MAN CONVICTED FOR ASSISTING FORMER TEDDINGTON SCHOOL PUPIL AFTER JAIL ESCAPE
ISSUED BY METROPOLITAN POLICE
A man has been convicted for his role in assisting Daniel Khalife after he escaped from prison.
An investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) London showed how Adeel Khan helped Khalife following his escape from HMP Wandsworth on 6 September, 2023.
A nationwide manhunt was launched to locate Khalife and he was on the run for three days before he was arrested near a canal in Northolt.
But during the investigation and following his arrest, it became clear to officers that Khalife was not acting completely alone in his attempts to evade capture by police.
The investigation team identified Khalife was communicating with Khan, whom he had met in prison, via mobile phone.
Detectives also found that Khan had arranged for Khalife to be given £400 in cash.
Commander Helen Flanagan, head of CTP London, said: “A huge amount of police resource was used during the manhunt for Daniel Khalife – a man who has now been convicted of espionage and terrorism offences.
“Adeel Khan knowingly helped him to try and evade capture by arranging for him to be given £400 cash, which enabled him to buy a mobile phone and other items that helped extend his time on the run.
“This case demonstrates that anyone who helps a criminal in this way will find themselves arrested and now they are also facing justice.”
Khan was interviewed in Wandsworth prison in October 2023 after CTP London officers found his name, prison number and mobile phone number written in a diary Khalife had on him when he was arrested.
Through analysis of mobile phone data, the officers discovered numerous phone calls between Khan and Khalife after his escape from the prison.
These phone calls were made from phones Khalife borrowed from members of the public, before he was able to purchase his own mobile phone with the cash Khan had arranged to be given to him.
The phone used to communicate with Khalife was never recovered but Khan was subsequently charged and pleaded guilty to possession of a phone in prison, contrary to Section 40 D(1) of the Prisons Act 1952.
Khan’s friend Imran Chowdhury, was also charged with assisting an offender after CTP London officers tracked down CCTV footage that showed Chowdhury and Khalife walking together towards a bank in the Richmond area.
This is when he withdrew £400 and gave it to Khalife.
Further enquiries identified that Chowdhury was paid £120 by Khan, via his girlfriend, for doing this. The jury heard Chowdhury did not know he was giving money to an escaped prisoner.
After a two-week trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, Chowdhury 26 (01.01.2000) of Chingford was found not guilty of assisting an offender
Khan 32, of Waltham Forest was found guilty. He will be sentenced at the same court on September 4.